


We'll Figure It Out

by broken_hearted_bard



Series: Prompt Writing [2]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Canon Compliant, Canon Compliant Except Epilogue, Canon Compliant Except the Epilogue, Case Fic, Divorced!Draco, Divorced!Harry, EWE, Gen, Implies Hermione/Ron, M/M, Mentions Draco/Astoria, Mentions Ginny/Blaise, Mentions Hannah/Wayne, Mentions Neville/George, Mentions Past Harry/Ginny, Not Compliant to the actual physical Deathly Hallows, Not Harry Potter and the Cursed Child Compliant, Post-War
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-16
Updated: 2021-02-25
Packaged: 2021-03-14 03:33:46
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 4,239
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29411988
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/broken_hearted_bard/pseuds/broken_hearted_bard
Summary: Harry is in love with Draco.Post Hogwarts, Post War, Mentions Past Harry/Ginny.Prompt Fic. Prompt: We'll figure it out. (Harry/Draco).This story is not canon compliant with the epilogue OR what canon Harry did with the Deathly Hallows.As such, it does have Harry/Ginny and Draco/Astoria divorcing when their kids are quite young and doesn't follow any of the canon after that.It is canon compliant with the blood curse/blood illness that Astoria Greengrass Malfoy has.It is a short case-fic, but the point is Harry/Draco, not necessarily the case.
Relationships: Draco Malfoy/Harry Potter, Other Couples Mentioned - Relationship
Series: Prompt Writing [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2064156
Comments: 6
Kudos: 6





	1. Beginning

**Author's Note:**

  * For [deandratb](https://archiveofourown.org/users/deandratb/gifts).



> HAPPY BELATED VALENTINE'S DAY!  
> This was originally intended to be posted on Valentine's Day, but I honestly just forgot.  
> Then, I meant to post it on the 15th, but I had a migraine that lasted all day and made life impossible.  
> So, happy belated valentine's day!!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Harry has some long, complicated thoughts about his feelings and relationship with Draco.  
> Then, he heads into work and they get assigned a new case.  
> Draco and Harry have been Captains (a Senior Auror rank) and partners for the last three years.

**December 2013**

He hadn't meant to fall in love with Draco Malfoy, of all people. But, he had. And now that it was real to him, real for him, he didn't know what to do about it.

It was fifteen years after the war and even though Harry was only thirty-three, he already felt as though he'd lived two lives, maybe three. He didn't know how to start over now, or if he even wanted to. His children were still pretty young and even though he and Ginny had been divorced for three full years, he didn't want to shake up their lives anymore than necessary.

Could he really start a relationship with Draco? Not the logistics of it, but the emotional and physical commitments. He and Ginny had never really seen eye-to-eye and their sex life had been sporadic, at best. During the divorce things had been said that had implied that Harry wasn't that good at it and he certainly wasn't that good at communication or emotional openness.

Draco had been his partner in the Auror Department for the last three years. Harry wasn't a regular Auror anymore but, more, the equivalent to a muggle superintendent in the British police. He'd worked his way up in the department and was on track to become the Head of the Auror Core in the next two or three years. Even though he was proud of himself for all of that work and achievement, he wasn't sure, anymore, that it was what he wanted. As a Senior Auror, with the title of Captain, Harry still investigated cases, searched for information, put together clues and presented his findings to the Assistant Chief before filing arrest paperwork. He didn't do stake-outs anymore or patrols or responding to complaints; instead, he and Draco were assigned a case by Chief Leopold Rabastan and allowed to work it through, aside from any grunt-work.

He liked his job. He felt useful and knowledgeable and he was still very dedicated to the work -- though he worked less often than he once had. He wasn't sure he wanted to give up the actual work to aid in overseeing a department -- which would be the next rung in the ladder, if he decided to go for it. Currently, he and Draco reported directly to Assistant Chief Nexwell, but they also ran a team of Aurors to help them in case-solving. Any unsolved cases moved to the Cold Case Department and they would, occasionally, be consulted.

They had both (Harry and Draco) worked so hard to get here -- top marks in all of their training courses and they had worked hard in the three years of training too. They'd each gone through a wide range of partners in the fifteen years since the Final Battle of Hogwarts. What they had now was a stable camaraderie that Harry depended on. He didn't know if he could risk this -- the friendship and working relationship he'd learned to lean on. It was Draco, after all, who had been there for him when his marriage to Ginny had broken up -- Ron hadn't been happy about the initial separation, four years earlier, and he'd stopped speaking to Harry; they'd only just reconnected in the last year.

Harry relied on Draco for adult conversation, funny stories, working on cases, companionship and overall friendship. They had a really good working relationship and, at this point, a really good friendship. Al and Scorpius were good friends and looked forward to going to Hogwarts together. Draco and Scorpius were even coming for Christmas and Boxing Day later this month. He didn't want to ruin things with his feelings -- feelings he wasn't sure that Draco returned.

Harry sighed and got up from the sofa. He'd been sitting in his home-office for the last few hours, just thinking about everything and remembering his and Draco's long history. Now, though, he needed to get ready for work. According to the missive he'd received, Chief Rabastan had a new case for them.

He went up the stairs to the ground-floor and into the kitchen for a cup of coffee before he needed to shower and change into his Auror gear. He picked up a few stray toys in the living room and deposited them in the correct bins in the playroom before heading up the stairs. On the top floor, he turned into his bedroom, with its en-suite bath and walk-in closet. Andromeda's rooms were across from his. The floor below him was where the bedrooms for his kids and Teddy were -- James and Albus shared a Jack-and-Jill style bathroom, but Lily had a bathroom of her own. Teddy also had a bathroom of his own.

The main (ground) floor had the kitchen, living room, play room, powder room and dining room. The basement held his office, a small potions lab and a storage room that they mostly kept sports equipment in. They also had a large back garden with a garden shed that he'd turned into a greenhouse. The front garden was very small and only really big enough for a bench and a couple of flower beds.

Considering it was the renovated and remodeled home in Godric's Hollow, the one he'd lived in as an infant, Harry was really proud of the home he'd created here and he was even fairly impressed with the amount of space they'd been able to carve out. The contractors had outdone themselves -- especially considering Harry hadn't wanted to use any wizard-space (though, of course, he'd been fine using magic).

Andromeda lived with Harry full-time. Teddy lived there when he wasn't at Hogwarts. They'd (Harry, Andromeda, Teddy, Ron, Hermione) all lived in Grimmauld Place after the war on and off, but he, Andromeda and Teddy had moved into Godric's Hollow after his separation from Ginny. He knew Andromeda hadn't wanted to be alone, after her husband's death, and that she'd wanted Harry to be a big part of Teddy's life so it'd been an easy fix for all of them to live at Grimmauld until Harry had married Ginny. For years, after the marriage, Andromeda and Teddy had joined Harry and Ginny at the house Harry'd had built just outside of Ottery St Catchpole and down the street from the Burrow. Ginny'd gotten the house in the divorce -- he hadn't wanted to uproot her (and the kids) and he'd had other options.

James, Lily and Albus were here on weekends, holidays, and all school breaks, but during the week they lived with their mother and Harry knew it was hard for them, that he and Ginny didn't live together anymore. How would they feel, he wondered, if things managed to work out with Draco? If he even got up the courage to just tell Draco how he felt and things worked out between them? How would it affect their kids?

Harry finished showering and dressing and then put on his gear -- the Elder wand in a holster on his right hip, his normal wand (the holly and phoenix feather) in a holster on his wand arm, his invisibility cloak was in a a pouch on his left hip, and he wore a magic-proof vest under his shirt and his Captain's badge was secured on his breast-pocket.

As he locked up the house he made a mental note to write Teddy back, at Hogwarts, but he pushed those thoughts away and headed to the apparation spot. He had a staff meeting to get to and a new case to start. His feelings, and what he wanted to do about them, could wait.

********************

TBC

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 2013.  
> James is 9 (B: March 10th 2004).  
> Al is 7 (B: May 22nd 2006).  
> Lily is about to turn 6 (B: December 27th 2007).
> 
> Scorpius is 7 (B: June 10th 2006)
> 
> Following the Wiki as closely as I can, but I did make up the birthdays myself.  
> I have also made up some details about Aurors, considering there's very little info in the Wiki.


	2. The Case

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Harry and Draco start a new case that isn't so new.

"Alright, everybody, gather around. The Chief has been very clear on what he wants to do, in regards to current cases and this new one," Assistant Chief Nexwell addressed Harry and Draco's team. 

Assistant Chief Nexwell was a tall, severely thin woman, with very long, black hair that she kept in a series of braids wound around her head. Harry had always been strongly reminded of Headmistress McGonagall by her and when he'd said the same to Draco and he'd agreed, they'd shared some memories and laughter about it -- it had been a decent bonding situation in their first year as partners.

"Kerr, Pye, Andrews, you'll finish working your burglary case -- when you're ready to arrest, just make sure you let one of your Captains know before you proceed. Dune, Emil, Fitzpatrick, you will all be on duty for whatever Captains Potter and Malfoy need during the entirety of their new case. They'll fill you in," Nexwell explained.

"Right, ready to take over, Captains?" she asked Draco, who nodded. She left quickly after that.

Harry went around their outer-office (much like a muggle police office) checking on the wards and ward-objects. Some wards could be put up in a more permanent fashion but others, like eavesdropping wards, had to be secured to an object and would, over time, wear thin and need to be renewed.

"Lieutenants Dune, Emil and Fitzpatrick," Draco said. "We'll meet you in Classroom B for the briefing. Lieutenants Kerr, Pye and Andrews, you've got your orders. When your case is finished, Captain Potter and I would very much like you to join in with the rest of the team and we'll brief you at that time."

Classroom B was a large room that was set up a lot like a classroom but with adult-sized desks and evidence-gathering and briefing materials. There were other rooms like it on other floors of the Law Enforcement Department (which was a building separate from the Ministry building), but this one was specific to Harry and Draco's team. They used it during every case.

As soon as the ward-checking was done and it seemed like their teams had split off into their separate groups, Draco pulled Harry into their shared, private office.

"Okay, out with it, Potter," Draco said -- not unkindly.

Harry stared at the floor. "Out with what?"

Draco sat on top of the desk in the middle of the room, though there was also one at the back that he much preferred. "You've been in a funk for the last three weeks. I don't know what's going on, but you're going to tell me. This case that we're about to introduce to half of our team could prove to be very dangerous. You'll put us all in jeopardy if you keep living in your head the way you've been doing. Tell me what's wrong and how I can help."

They'd been partners for three years, but they'd managed to become friends only a few years before that. Because of their long history, and how hard they had each worked to become friends and work-partners, Draco wasn't about to let Harry put himself or others in danger because of whatever was going on.

"Is it the kids?" Draco asked. "Or did something happen with the Weasleys? Is Ginevra okay?"

Harry rushed to reassure Draco. "No, no nothing like that! The kids are fine and as far as I know the Weasleys are all well too. Ginny's good -- happy, I think, with Blaise. I think they'll probably get engaged soon, actually."

"Is that what it is? Are you regretting your divorce or wishing she hadn't moved on so quickly??" Draco asked.

Harry laughed. "By the gods, no," he replied. "While it was tough to get divorced, to choose divorce as our option because of the kids, it's what was best for us -- absolutely. I don't have any regrets over it and I'm happy for her - I'm glad she's happy. It's nothing like that."

Draco nodded. "Alright. What is it, then?"

"I'm not ready to talk about it. When I can, I will. For now, I promise my head will be in the game, on the case -- I won't put anyone in jeopardy. I promise," said Harry.

"I know I can trust you, Potter. I'm here, if you need me. As always," Draco replied and then they left their office and went into Classroom B.

The case board was already laid out and the members of their team were ready and waiting. Evidence bags, though there were few, were laid out on a table that was pushed against the wall. At the back of the room was a strip of counter with a sink, electric kettle and a coffee pot. There was a cold-cupboard at one end as well. The smell of freshly brewed coffee filled the room.

Harry took the lead.

"This is going to be a long case. It's going to be hard and there'll be days where we don't know what we're doing or when we go over everything we've gathered again and again. Emilia and Caio, the two of you were here the last time we dealt with a case like this and I am sorry to say that it's happening again. Captain Duncan and his team thought they were dealing with a singular murder and when they realized its connection to the murders from 2009 and 2011, she notified the Chief and he reassigned it to us. We're the specialists, especially here. Not catching the killer two years ago, or in 2009 was on us. We've been given another chance, as horrible as it is. We need to solve it this time," Harry explained.

Draco stepped forward. "I'm going to go over what we know so far and what we expect of our team for right now. Then, we'll talk about the different scenarios and after that we'll talk about how the foreseeable future might go. Once the rest of our team is done with their burglary case, they'll join us and it'll be up to the three of you to get them up to speed."

"There is very little evidence involved, just like last time," Harry added.

"But there are some pieces of evidence, one witness, and a very key factor -- the calling card of the murderer was left on the body, like the two times before. This third body showing up changes the game. This is now a case to catch a serial murderer," Draco explained. "So let's get to work. The case details and evidence that we have so far..."

Harry stepped back and leaned against the wall as Draco took the spotlight and couldn't help but stare, with his peripheral vision, at his partner. Draco was best in front of their team, way better at communicating and directing than Harry -- though Harry was excellent at demonstration as he had been since his 5th year at Hogwarts. It was thrilling to see Draco in action -- either in front of their team or in the field. It was definitely one of the things that had opened Harry's eyes to how attracted to Draco he was, though, of course, not the only thing.

It had been years since Harry had been with anyone -- he hadn't dated since he and Ginny had split. He didn't regret the spilt nor the self-imposed celibate nature of his life. He really wasn't into casual flings or relationships that felt temporary and he and Ginny had tried, and struggled, for years to make it work when it had never really been what either of them had wanted. It hadn't taken long to discover his attraction to Draco and, subsequently, to other men but it had taken a long time for Harry to come to terms with it.

Harry loved Draco. He'd loved him for a long time, but it was only the last few weeks that he'd realized he was _in love_ with him. There was a lot that they knew about each other that they hadn't known as kids and it'd helped to mend things between them. Harry had been pretty obsessed with Draco throughout school (he could admit it now) and he'd kept tabs on him after their 8th Year and during Draco's four years at University. He'd lost track of him after that, for a while, but they'd gotten to know each other again just after Draco had married Astoria.

Draco had changed a lot, during their 8th year at Hogwarts, but Astoria had really turned the tide in terms of policy that Draco supported (with his Wizengamot votes) and in terms of how much more open Draco was as a person. They still lived together and had initially divorced out of Astoria's concern for the well-being of both Draco and their son. Now, it was pretty clear that Astoria was living out the last years of her life and that she wanted Draco to move on with his life so that he wouldn't be devastated at the eventual loss.

It was these dynamics that kept Harry from flat out saying, "Draco, I'm in love with you." He knew, without even a shadow of doubt, that Draco loved Astoria and they were divorced due to her circumstances (blood curse, magick curse) and not because they'd never worked or fallen out of love. Harry valued their friendship and his friendship with Astoria and Al's friendship with Scorpius too much to risk them. And although he often felt consumed with his love for Draco, he wouldn't damage what they had to confess it.

So, if he and Draco were going to continue to work together and be close friends, Harry was going to have to do better at locking his feelings up -- around Draco and those closest to the both of them. It was time to stop living in his head about it and time to start trying to live with it.

*****************

TBC


	3. After the Party

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Harry and Ginny talk.
> 
> I meant to have this chapter up days ago, but then I got sick (a cold) and it has really been kicking my ass. Like, I keep feeling better one day only to feel worse the next. I don't think it's COVID though, because it's just standard cold symptoms. Anyways, here it [the chapter] is now. This fic keeps evolving on me, which is both annoying (cuz I wanted it to be short) and awesome (because now it'll be longer and more detailed).

**4th, January 2014. A Saturday.**

"Well, everything's tidied up out there,"" Ginny said as she came into the kitchen.

Harry turned from where he'd been standing at the sink, staring out at the falling snow. "Thanks for taking care of that, Gin."

"You've seemed off all day. Don't get me wrong, you've been there and it was a really fun party. Lily had such a good time. But something's been off, Harry," Ginny said.

Harry gathered a small tray and the slices of lemon-drizzle cake he kept just for Ginny's visits -- it was her favourite. He grabbed the biscuit tin too. As he moved to place them on the kitchen table, she filled the kettle with water and gathered the cups and prepared the teapot.

Once the tea was ready, they sat at the kitchen table. 

"The kids are all asleep upstairs?" Harry asked.

"Yeah. Lily was so happy that her birthday party turned into a sleepover -- I love how close she is with Alice and Tate. Al seemed pretty happy about it too -- he and Scorpius have such a good friendship, though I really wish Ron would stop all that nonsense about the boy, for Rose's sake. I know it's hard for Al and Rose to be such good friends when Rose isn't comfortable with Draco's son," Ginny said before taking a slice of cake.

Harry nodded in agreement and then changed the subject. "I'm sorry we weren't able to get everyone together on her actual birthday," he said softly.

"Lily understands. Really. It's the day after Boxing Day and everyone's busy. She gets it. She was thrilled to have this big party in her honour," Ginny explained as she turned her attention to the cake in front of her. After a few mouthfuls, she sat back. "Now, why don't you tell me what's wrong?"

Harry took a few sips of tea and then set the cup back down. He shrugged. "No, it's nothing. You know I get like this on a hard case. It's just the case, Gin, that's all."

"Uh uh." Ginny shook her head and pointed at Harry with her fork. "No, I know how you get on a case, and I'm aware that this case has been harder than most. This isn't that. So, instead of lying about it or being vague....why don't you just talk to me?"

Harry shifted uncomfortably on the chair. "I really don't..."

"Harry, just tell him you're in love with him, for Merlin's sake. You'll feel a lot better once it's out in the open and you don't have to brood about it anymore."

Harry's eyes went wide and scared. "What on earth are you talking about?"

"Don't play games with me, Mr. Potter," Ginny said fiercely. "You've been in love with him for years and preoccupied with him for years before that. I know it and you know it and even Hermione knows it. So just...tell me what's going on. Why haven't you told him?"

Harry sighed. "I didn't realize it was that obvious."

She waved that away. "It's probably not. I mean, I see it and so does Hermione, maybe Neville. Possibly Luna. But I'm 99% certain no one else knows or sees."

"That's a lot of people to be so tuned into how I feel about him," Harry said after a few tense moments.

"What are you so worried about?" Ginny asked -- her voice was kind though, her eyes searching.

"I don't want to jeopardize the friendships involved -- mine and Draco's, Al's and Scorpius. I don't want to mess anything up. I can't have him hating me while we work together and I don't want either of us to have to transfer," Harry explained.

"The worst thing that could happen, Harry, is that he simply doesn't return your feelings. Do you really think anything else -- anything else bad -- would come of telling him how you feel?"

"What if he hates me? What if he's disgusted and freaked out that...that I've loved him for years? What if he doesn't want to be work partners anymore? What if...?" Harry trailed off and Ginny could clearly see the tears in his eyes.

"Harry, he won't hate you. He might not return your feelings, true, and he might not understand why you like him and he might reject you, but....he won't deliberately hurt you over it and he won't be mean. You know him better than I do, obviously, but even I can see how much you mean to him."

"He loves Astoria, Gin. They only divorced because she was worried he wouldn't move on with his life, but....he still loves her. He's....he's unravelling about her health, and you saw them today -- they seemed so close and so in sync. He'll never feel that way about me and how can I be so selfish as to tell him I'm in love with him when his world is clearly still wrapped around her? It's selfish and I can't do that. Not to everyone involved. They'll never forgive me," Harry explained.

"Oh Harry, no. There's nothing to forgive. You can't help how you feel. And....it isn't selfish to tell him. If he's indifferent to you, then you can begin to move on. Besides....you don't tell him like you expect anything back. You tell him it's a gift and that you have no expectations but that you thought he should know. You tell him in a way that is gentle and kind and not as if he owes you anything," Ginny said.

"Well of course he doesn't owe me anything!" Harry pushed away from the table and stood. "I don't....I don't know if I'm strong enough to face the part where he doesn't understand or feels threatened or something."

"Love, we're magical. We, as a whole community of witches and wizards, have a very open minded view on same-sex relationships and things -- even in Pureblood circles. Because we have magic. I mean, you've seen Neville and George and you've been with them out and about....you know they're accepted, as are their kids. This isn't quite the crisis situation you've made it up to be in your head. I promise, it'll be fine -- on that score. Sure, he might be a little freaked out and he may not return your feelings but.....everyone likes knowing they're loved, Harry," Ginny said.

Harry took a deep, long breath and then sat back down. "Yeah. You're right. Of course."

"As always." Ginny laughed and then sipped her cooling tea. "Now, tell me about the case. Let's get all of that on the table too. I'm a retired Quidditch star, not an Auror so I'm safe to talk to and you know I won't leak it to the press. Come on, time to talk about it. What's going on with the case? Is the Mirror Murderer back?"

Harry winced. "I really wish people wouldn't call them that. It's a horrible moniker, but, also, giving these people these glorified Serial Killer Names makes everything far too attractive to people who want to seek the lime-light."

"That doesn't answer my question. Is he back?"

"We don't know if this killer is a man, Ginny. But yes, they are back. If we don't catch them this time, it'll probably be another two years before we get the chance again."

"Okay, tell me about it," Ginny said as she got up to refresh the teapot. "You wouldn't talk about it last time and I know part of that was because, at the time, we were estranged. But...we're better now, fixed I'd say, so....tell me. I can help you with your perspective."

"There have been three bodies that we know about and they have all had a rune carved into their sides and a mirror left on the body. There's very little forensics and what there is has been confusing..." Harry began.

********************************************

TBC

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a note I thought was important, because it's likely it won't be explained in the fic:  
> Alice is Neville and George's daughter. (Yes, Mpreg, because MAGIC). She's Lily's same age and named after Neville's mum. They also have Fred (eldest) and Roxanne (middle).  
> Tate is Hannah and Wayne's youngest kid (they run the Leaky Cauldron and live above it).  
> **Some Epilogue details have been used.


End file.
